Further Reading

Why save all the big announcements for I/O? Google's Advanced Technology and Projects group just announced a Project Tango tablet, a bigger version of the computer vision device we saw a few months ago. This time, the Kinect-style 3D-sensing platform is a 7-inch tablet, and unlike the phone—which was only shown off to a select few developers—the tablet will actually be sold later this year for $1,024.

Google makes it very clear that this is not a consumer device; it's meant for developers who want to create computer vision apps. Doing 3D mapping and translations is very resource intensive, so Google has built a beast of a device. The Project Tango Tablet Development Kit is powered by an Nvidia Tegra K1 processor and sports 4GB of RAM as well as 128GB of storage. It will even be available with an LTE modem, so developers won't have to be tethered to Wi-Fi.

Tango is all about allowing a mobile device to understand and interact with the real world. Just as a Kinect can see a person in 3D and use that data for controller input, Project Tango can see the world around it in 3D. This would allow developers to make augmented-reality apps that line up perfectly with the real world or make an app that can "3D scan" an object or environment. It could even lead to an app that could power a robot.

Tango is still a work in progress, and Google says developers will get software updates as the software and APIs improve. Anyone interested in getting a Tango tablet to experiment with can hand over their name and e-mail to Google, and the company will get back to you later this year when the device is ready.

Ron Amadeo / Ron is the Reviews Editor at Ars Technica, where he specializes in Android OS and Google products. He is always on the hunt for a new gadget and loves to rip things apart to see how they work.